The Ubi ubiquitous computer is here

In the next few days, I expect to receive my Ubi “ubiquitous computer.” I can’t wait.

According to the promo, I’ll be able to plug it into a power outlet and the WiFi-connected, voice-operated Ubi gadget will magically make the environment around it Internet-enabled.

Think an environment-aware version of Siri — with sensors that allow for remote monitoring of temperature, humidity, air pressure, and ambient light, for starters. Plus the usual Siri Internet information lookup stuff — but no cell phone (or computer) required.

The promo also says I should be able to use it to do Internet searches, send text messages and emails, ask questions, have it set timers and reminders, etc. — all hands-free. But this video will explain it better:

Open the iPod bay door, Hal

Unified Computer Intelligence Corporation CEO Leor Grebler told me the device will also be able to sense devices that are openly connected to the Internet (eventually, the Nest “learning” thermostat and smart smoke/CO2 alarms), “but we’re not controlling devices outright yet. We will add a way to talk to devices/Internet services as well as for them to talk back to the user.”

And you can program its user interface on a computer, or verbally on the Ubi, Grebler said.

What I really want is to access my Ubi remotely via my Google Glass, along with a webcam. Grebler told me that will be possible in the future.

“We’re slowly releasing apps on portal.theubi.com,” he said. “We have the first blossoms of an API that will essentially allow any Internet service, such as email, calendar, Twitter, Facebook, etc. ) to have its own voice and be interactive through the Ubi.”

Grebler also said Google Voice, Twilio, and other free (or cheap) phone services will be possible (but not Skype). Translation: throw out your home phone.

Project Ubi Odyssey

In that connection, Grebler said Unified Computer Intelligence Corporation will announce “Project Ubi Odyssey” today (Feb. 10). It will allow early adopters to develop connectivity with home automation and Internet services, and create novel human computer interactions.

(You can register for the program at www.theubi.com and selected candidates will be invited to participate in the program. The Beta Ubi cost is $299. The program is currently limited to 5,000 participants and to U.S. residents.)

I’ll let you know how Ubi works. Meanwhile, KurzweilAI would love to hear your ideas in the comments below or contact us directly.

Comments (26)

Is anyone doing R&D for an alternative to wifi & cell-phone connectivity that is still wireless, but radiation free? I know that wifi has considerably less radioactive output than mobile phones (when in contact with the body), however, I worry about the accumulative effects of turning our homes — our planet — into macro-microwave ovens. (Also, won’t Googleglasses users have mobile phone pressed against their heads constantly all waking-day?)

True, biological bodies may become obsolete as we download “ourselves” into radiation-friendly/space-faring “bodies”… but do we really want to fry the entire biosphere? (Also, I’d like to not die of cancer before such a download is not only necessary, but feasible. Okay?)

Right now a fully connected home can be had with voice automation using smartphones or tablets, but there is a catch. ANYONE who has participated in a VOIP conference meeting in a NON-Meeting space will recall the echos and noise in an uncontrolled space. People do not live in acoustically controlled spaces and the voice commands simply do not work reliably in our living spaces. There are sophisticated microphone arrays with audio processors that help to get the most out of a bad space, but they cost hundreds of dollars EACH. You need one in every room for this to work.
This is already available via your smartphones. Android “TASKER” allows any possible setting, input, or condition to trigger actions with any other possible variable or data on your smartphone. Text to speech and speech to text are standard on modern devices. Home automation systems and virtually every device on the market is WiFi enabled and can be part of a massively interconnected lifestyle. The current problem is bringing all of those possibilities together, under one interface, and making them function flawlessly and respond instantly. I do not see this device accomplishing much of that. You can buy a ROKO, or ZIKI and hack it to make this Ubi device.

Hi Don – good point! We’ve delivered nearly 2,000 Ubis to our Kickstarter and pre-order backers. We’re trying to parcel out invitations / acceptances so that we can ship out Ubis within about 4 weeks of acceptance.

So let me get this straight. We place this always on Ubi device in our homes that can pick up on keywords, speech, and more then go on the web with this information? Can cameras be hooked up as well? If so, it seems we may have a great device to make our lives safer. With all those other sensors added, tons of other wonderful possibilities not even mentioned are possible. BTW, there is a lot of sarcasm tossed in there because we are essentially bugging our own homes for anyone who undoubtedly will have nothing but our best interests in mind. I also didn’t see any mention of any privacy protection settings. I designed smart utility meters and home automation in the past and see that no one is still worried about these “improvements” being added to our homes willy-nilly.

To me the solution is simple. If you want to ensure others don’t know what you are doing don’t buy the product. If you’re in the UK, don’t go outside, drive, visit a museum or take any transportation (lol).

I see a screenplay unfolding. I live in a rural area and Siri is really a source of comedy, the responses she / he comes up with are really funny sometimes. I am sure it not as bad in a area that has great connectivity. Or maybe I am just a soft talker. You have to love the effort, eventually it will work just fine . I applaud the efforts of the first attempts and by all means carry on. I will keep my sense of humor and enjoy the ride.

How does Ubi get trained with the ability to understand different voices or accents? I noticed 2 of the 3 speakers on this video have non standard USA/English voices/accents and so it seems to work fine for them. Is there a list of obvious commands that you practice with or learn? If you have trouble with one particular command is there a 2nd way to say things so you can get it to work in these special cases where Ubi may not understand you? One of my main frustrations with Siri is that sometimes it works and other times it has no idea… but the times it does not work, I am left hanging/waiting and no idea that it is clueless. That awkard waiting period is a deal killer. Also Siri is not able to connect 2 commands together well, so it would be nice (especially if first command fails) to have a voice system already be aware of what I am trying to do from a first command (2nd command is related to first, within time period, or unless given fresh command). It is not just about voice activation or list of command or ability to understand accents, but the speed of any back and forth use of commands and confirmation it gets it. Call Fred, still calls Ted and hard to get it to stop before it already launches call and then I spend more time apologizing for error call than if just clicked on the button. This system would be fun to watch new users play with it and post up their home videos to show it in action. Amazing they can get a system this powerful in a box that small. (love to hear more on how they train it if it does not work well with my voice and love to hear if any difference with female or voices that are not as deep or easy to hear as well as what about background noise of radio, or other people in the room).

Commands can be customized and made to be more flexible to pick up a variety of likely hits. We use Android’s speech recognition engine, which relies on Google, and we’ve found it to be more robust than other solutions.

but…..then they can sell you 5, or one for every room you are normally in…. LOL.

But I think you bring up a serious design concern as most cell phones are connected to these smart houses to be able to make calls, check the internet and always be with you… plus your cell phone is already setup for phone numbers or voice systems. Most cell phone apps are auto built for home controlling, so it will interesting if people chose to learn a new/different system than their cell phones and are also willing to have to pick rooms where this works. Maybe they plug this Ubi into a moving vacuum cleaner that just follows you around all the time. Or mini flying quadcopter, so it is like a fly on the wall and always listening in to your next command.

Good point. We’ve found through our own use of the Ubi that around the home, we put our cellphones down in one spot and roam around. The hope is these might eventually freeze and shrink down so they can affordably be placed everywhere.

My house is long, old, and rickety. I’m certainly not putting $323 (that includes NY sales taxes) into this gadget. I can set my own damn Honeywell thermostat…and my microwave already has a kitchen timer built into it.

Are you sneaking this acid to the Southern Baptists? I haven’t met any who would take it on their own…except for a rebellious teen…and such a kid won’t have any problems with this new gadgetron. (Even if he’s a clone of Venkman.)

It’s things like this that show how futile the spying system really is. As things stand the NSA can’t keep everything it sifts through for more than a month and the sites they’ve selected to house hard-drive farms keep burning down when they go to full power.

Not to mention that they’re suffering from Tet Syndrome, or they’re getting so much data that anything that might be useful is being buried under all the crap they sweep up. All things like the Ubi are going to do is create more “noise” obscuring any “signal” terrorists may be broadcasting over the Internet. Overall it’s a huge waste of time that could be better spend with more tried and true HUMINT. The only reason the NSA is engaged in bulk data collection is the same reason the IRS is targeting political opposition. The only real question is are we going to put up with it or not?